Abington - South Shore Recycling Cooperative
Acton - Town Transfer Station
Acushnet - Recycling in Acushnet
Adams - Department of Public Works
Agawam - Solid Waste Information
Alford - Town Transfer Station
Amesbury - Department of Public Works
Amherst - Recycling & Solid Waste
Andover - Town Recycling Program
Aquinnah (Gay Head) - Martha's Vineyard Refuse Disposal District
Arlington - Trash & Recycling
Ashburnham - Department of Public Works
Ashby - Recycling Center & Transfer Station
Ashfield - Earth 911
Ashland - Trash & Recycling
Athol - North Central Regional Solid Waste Cooperative
Attleboro - City Recycling Program
Auburn - DPW Solid Waste Division
Avon - Board of Health
Ayer - Town Transfer Station
Barnstable - DPW Solid Waste Division
Barre - Landfill & Recycling Center
Becket - Earth 911
Bedford - Recycling Information
Belchertown - Department of Public Works
Bellingham - Department of Public Works
Belmont - Trash, Recycling & Yard Waste Information
Berkley - Earth 911
Berlin - Town Transfer Station
Bernardston - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Beverly - Recycling Information
Billerica - Public Works Services
Blackstone - Blackstone Valley Regional Recycling Center
Blandford - Earth 911
Bolton - Transfer Station & Recycling Center
Boston - City Recycling Program
Bourne - Town Recycling Center
Boxborough - Town Transfer Station
Boxford - Trash Collection & Recycling Information
Boylston - Earth 911
Braintree - Trash & Recycling
Brewster - Town Transfer Station
Bridgewater - Town Transfer Station
Brimfield - Earth 911
Brockton - Department of Public Works
Brookfield - Board of Health
Brookline - Recycling Information
Buckland - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Burlington - Trash & Recycling Schedule & Information
Cambridge - Recycling Information
Canton - Recycling Department
Carlisle - Town Transfer Station
Carver - Rochester Convenience Facility
Charlemont - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Charlton - Town Recycling Committee
Chatham - ChathamRecycles.org
Chelmsford - Recycling Department
Chelsea - Rubbish, Recycling & Yard Waste
Cheshire - Earth 911
Chester - Board of Health
Chesterfield - Earth 911
Chicopee - Department of Public Works
Chilmark - Martha's Vineyard Refuse Disposal District
Clarksburg - Earth 911
Clinton - Trash Pickup & Recycling
Cohasset - South Shore Recycling Cooperative
Colrain - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Concord - Recycling Information
Conway - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Cummington - Board of Health
Dalton - Town Transfer Station
Danvers - Recycling & Refuse Collection
Dartmouth - Department of Public Works
Dedham - Recycling & Solid Waste Services
Deerfield - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Dennis - Transfer Station & Recycling Center
Devens - Community Services: Recycling Drop-Off
Dighton - Health Department
Douglas - Earth 911
Dover - Recycling Home Page
Dracut - Trash & Large Item Disposal
Dudley - Earth 911
Dunstable - Town Transfer Station
Duxbury - Town Transfer Station
East Bridgewater - Solid Waste & Recycling Information
East Brookfield - Solid Waste Department
Eastham - Department of Public Works
Easthampton - Trash Removal
East Longmeadow - Trash & Recycling Contacts
Easton - Board of Health
Edgartown - Martha's Vineyard Refuse Disposal District
Egremont - Town Contact List
Erving - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Essex - Town Transfer Station
Everett - Recycling Information
Fairhaven - Board of Health
Fall River - Department of Public Works
Falmouth - DPW Waste Management Facility
Fitchburg - Trash, Recycling & Yard Waste
Florida - Earth 911
Foxborough - Trash & Recycling
Framingham - Department of Public Works
Franklin - Town Recycling Committee
Freetown - Waste Management & Transfer Station
Gardner - Health Department
Gay Head (Aquinnah) - Martha's Vineyard Refuse Disposal District
Georgetown - Trash & recycling Contacts
Gill - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Gloucester - Recycling & Trash Information
Goshen - Refuse Disposal & Recycling Center
Gosnold - Earth 911
Grafton - Department of Public Works
Granby - Earth 911
Granville - Earth 911
Great Barrington - Town Recycling Center
Greenfield - DPW Solid Waste Division
Groton - Town Transfer Station
Groveland - Board of Health
Hadley - Transfer Station
Halifax - Recycling & Solid Waste Department
Hamilton - Recycling & Refuse Information
Hampden - Board of Health
Hancock - Earth 911
Hanover - South Shore Recycling Cooperative
Hanson - Town Recycling Program
Hardwick - Town Recycling Center
Harvard - Transfer Station & Recycling Guidelines
Harwich - Town Tansfer Station
Hatfield - Earth 911
Haverhill - Rubbish & Curbside Collection
Hawley - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Heath - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Hingham - Department of Public Works
Hinsdale - Earth 911
Holbrook - South Shore Recycling Cooperative
Holden - Recycling & Trash
Holland - Waste Removal
Holliston - Recycling & Solid Waste
Holyoke - Department of Public Works
Hopedale - Recycling Information
Hopkinton - Town Recycling Committee
Hubbardson - Town Recycling Center
Hudson - BP Trucking Transfer Station
Hull - Recycling Information
Huntington - Transfer Station
Hyannis (Barnstable) - DPW Solid Waste Division
Ipswich - Town Recycling Committee
Kingston - South Shore Recycling Cooperative
Lakeville - Town Transfer Station
Lancaster - Town Recycling Center
Lanesborough - Frequently Asked Questions
Lawrence - Recycling & Trash Information
Lee - Earth 911
Leicester - Board of Health
Lenox - Earth 911
Leominster - Rubbish & Recycling
Leverett - Town Transfer Station
Lexington - Trash & Hazardous Waste
Leyden - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Lincoln - Town Transfer Station
Littleton - Highway Department
Longmeadow - Town Recycling Center
Lowell - DPW Recycling Program
Ludlow - Department of Public Works
Lunenburg - North Central Regional Solid Waste Cooperative
Lynn - Department of Public Works
Lynnfield - Recycling Committee
Malden - Department of Public Works
Manchester-by-the-Sea - Trash Disposal, Recycling & Composting
Mansfield - Recycling Information
Marblehead - Board of Health
Marion - Recycling & Rubbish
Marlborough - Rubbish & Recycling
Marshfield - Trash & Recycling
Mashpee - Town Transfer Station
Mattapoisett - Board of Health
Maynard - Recycling & Solid Waste
Medfield - Town Transfer Station
Medford - Recycling Information
Medway - Board of Health
Melrose - Recycling Information
Mendon - Board of Health Trash Program
Merrimac - Curbside Recycling Program
Methuen - Department of Public Works
Middleborough - Trash & Recyclables
Middlefield - Earth 911
Middleton - Department of Public Works
Milford - Board of Health
Millbury - Town transfer Station
Millis - Department of Public Works
Milton - Trash, Recycling & Yard Waste Information
Millville - Town Home Page
Monroe - Earth 911
Monson - Board of Health
Montague - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Monterey - Town Transfer Station
Montgomery - Earth 911
Mount Washington - Earth 911
Nahant - Trash & Recycling
Nantucket - Department of Public Works
Natick - Recycling Center
Needham - Recycling & Transfer Station
New Ashford - Earth 911
New Bedford - DPW Solid Waste Division
New Braintree - Trash & Recycling
Newbury - Town Transfer Station
Newburyport - Recycling & Trash
New Marlborough - Town Transfer Station
New Salem - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Newton - Solid Waste & Recycling
Norfolk - DPW Solid Waste Division & Transfer Station
North Adams - City Transfer Station
North Andover - Solid Waste & Recycling
North Attleborough - Solid Waste Collection & Recycling Information
Northborough - Town Engineering Department
Northbridge - Solid Waste & Recycling
North Brookfield - Town Recycling Center
Northfield - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Northhampton - Recycling Information
North Reading - Recycling Information
Norton - Trash & Recycling Information
Norwell - South Shore Recycling Cooperative
Norwood - Recycling Information
Oak Bluffs - Martha's Vineyard Refuse Disposal District
Oakham - Earth 911
Orange - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Orleans - Town Transfer Station
Otis - Center for Ecological Technology
Oxford - Earth 911
Palmer - Earth 911
Paxton - Earth 911
Peabody - City Home Page
Pelham - Earth 911
Pembroke - Trash & Recycling Information
Pepperell - Town Transfer Station
Peru - Earth 911
Petersham - North Central Regional Solid Waste Cooperative
Phillipston - Town Transfer Station
Pittsfield - Department of Public Works & Utilities
Plainfield - Earth 911
Plainville - Trash & Recycling
Plymouth - Solid Waste Division Recycling Program
Plympton - Town Transfer Station
Princeton - Earth 911
Provincetown - Department of Public Works
Quincy - Public Works Department
Randolph - Recycling Information
Raynham - Transfer & Recycling Facility
Reading - Recycling Information
Rehoboth - Town Handbook
Revere - Trash & Recycling Information
Richmond - Town Home Page
Rochester - Transfer Station (Mattapoisett) & Trash Pick-Up
Rockland - South Shore Recycling Cooperative
Rockport - DPW Transfer Station
Rowe - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Rowley - Recycling Information
Royalston - North Central Regional Solid Waste Cooperative
Russell - Earth 911
Rutland - Earth 911
Salem - Recycling Department
Salisbury - Department of Public Works
Sandisfield - Center for Ecological Technology
Sandwich - DPW Transfer Station
Saugus - Department of Public Works
Savoy - Earth 911
Scituate - DPW Transfer Station Division
Seekonk - Department of Public Works
Sharon - DPW Operations Division
Sheffield - Town Transfer Station
Shelburne - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Sherborn - Recycling Information
Shirley - Board of Health
Shrewsbury - Rubbish Disposal & Recycling
Shutesbury - Recycling & Solid Waste
Somerset - Earth 911
Somerville - Trash & Recycling Information
Southborough - Town Recycling Committee
Southbridge - Curbside Rubbish Removal
South Hadley - Department of Public Works
Southampton - Town Transfer Station
Southwick - DPW Solid Waste Division
Spencer - Town Transfer Station
Springfield - Department of Public Works
Sterling - Department of Public Works
Stockbridge - Town Web Site
Stoneham - Recycling & Solid Waste Program
Stoughton - Department of Public Works
Stow - Earth 911
Sturbridge - Board of Health
Sudbury - Transfer Station & Recycling Center
Sunderland - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Sutton - Town Transfer Station
Swampscott - Board of Health
Swansea - Town Recycling Program
Taunton - Solid Waste & Recycling Information
Templeton - Board of Health
Tewksbury - Recycling Committee
Tisbury - Trash & Recycling Services
Tolland - Transfer Station & Recycling
Topsfield - Trash Collection & Recycling Information
Townsend - Recycling Information
Truro - Town Transfer Station
Turners Falls (Montague) - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Tyngsboro - Recycling Committee
Tyringham - Earth 911
Upton - Board of Health
Uxbridge - Earth 911
Wakefield - Department of Public Works
Wales - Earth 911
Walpole - Recycling Information
Waltham - Recycling Department
Ware - Earth 911
Wareham - Recycling Information
Warren - Earth 911
Warwick - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Washington - Earth 911
Watertown - Department of Public Works
Wayland - Board of Health
Webster - Earth 911
Wellesley - Recycling & Disposal Facility
Wellfleet - Recycling Information
Wendell - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Wenham - Town Recycling Program
Westborough - Recycling & Trash Disposal
West Boylston - Trash & Recycling Information
West Bridgewater - Town Transfer Station
West Brookfield - Highway Department
Westfield - Refuse & Recycling Collection
Westford - WestfordRecycles.org
Westhampton - Earth 911
Westminster - Town Web Site
West Newbury - Town Web Site
Weston - Department of Public Works
Westport - Landfill, Transfer Station & Recycling
West Springfield - Curbside Trash & Recycling Collection
West Stockbridge - Town Transfer Station
West Tisbury - Town Transfer Station
Westwood - Trash & Recycling Information
Weymouth - Town Trash & Recycling Program
Whately - Franklin County Solid Waste Management District
Whitman - South Shore Recycling Cooperative
Wilbraham - Disposal & Recycling Center
Williamsburg - Earth 911
Williamstown - Town Transfer Station
Wilmington - Recycling Information
Winchendon - Town Transfer Station
Winchester - Town Transfer Station
Windsor - Earth 911
Winthrop - Trash & Curbside Recycling
Woburn - Recycling Information
Worcester - Department of Public Works & Parks
Worthington - Town Information
Wrentham - Town Recycling Committee
Yarmouth - Solid Waste Disposal & Recycling Center
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 28.2 square miles (73.1 km²), of which, 27.5 square miles (71.2 km²) of it is land and 0.7 square miles (1.9 km²) of it (2.62%) is water. Bridgewater is 99th out of the 351 communities in the Commonwealth, and eighth out of the twenty-seven towns in Plymouth County in terms of land area. The town is bordered by West Bridgewater to the northwest, East Bridgewater to the northeast, Halifax to the east, Middleborough to the south, and Raynham to the west. Bridgewater is approximately seven miles south of Brockton, ten miles northeast of Taunton, and twenty-seven miles south of Boston.
Neighborhoods in Bridgewater include Stanley, Scotland, Pratt Town (Paper Mill Village), and South Bridgewater.
Bridgewater lies along the Taunton River, which has several other rivers and brooks which branch off of the main waterway. There are also several ponds, the largest of which is Lake Nippenicket along the western edge of the town. There is also a state forest, a town forest, several conservation areas and a large portion of the Hockomock Swamp Wildlife Management Area, in the western part of town. Parts of this swamp give rise to the so-called Bridgewater Triangle, a small area of concentrated reports of strange Fortean phenomena, colonial "dark days," Bigfoot and mysterious black panthers, UFO sightings, and other weird encounters, a phrase coined by Loren Coleman, author of Mysterious America, often compared to the Bermuda Triangle.[1]
On the national level, Bridgewater is a part of Massachusetts's 9th congressional district, which has been represented since 2001 by Stephen Lynch. The state's senior (Class II) member of the United States Senate, re-elected in 2008, is John Kerry. The junior (Class I) senator, elected in 2010, is Scott Brown.
On the state level, Bridgewater is represented in the Massachusetts House of Representatives as a portion of the Eighth Plymouth district, which includes Raynham and a small portion of Easton. In the Massachusetts Senate, the town is a part of the First Plymouth and Bristol district, which includes Berkley, Carver, Dighton, Marion, Middleborough, Raynham, Taunton and Wareham.[3] The town is patrolled by the Fourth (Middleborough) Barracks of Troop D of the Massachusetts State Police.[4]
Bridgewater is governed on the local level by the open town meeting form of government, led by a board of selectmen until January 2011, when Bridgewater will be led by seven precinct councilors, 1 per precinct, and 2 at large councilors, with an appointed town manager, assessor, tax collector, for a total of 9 councilors. This is from the majority Yes vote on #1 at the April 24, 2010 annual town election, to change from a 5 person elected board of selectmen to a 9 person town council, and thus abolishing the annual town meeting. Town facilities are located at the center of town, with the police department headquarters being just west of the square along Route 104. There are two fire departments in town, next to the college and in the eastern part of town. There is one post office, located just north of the town center along Route 18. The town's public library is just north of the town center, and is a part of the Southeastern Area Internet Library Services (SAILS) network. The town also has a National Guard armory along Route 18, and much of the southern end of the town is occupied by the Bridgewater branch of the Massachusetts Correctional Institute (MCI). Old Colony Correctional Center is located in Bridewater. The complex also includes a state mental hospital (Bridgewater State Hospital), and both are major units of the state's penal system. On site there is also an alcohol and substance abuse center (the Massachusetts Treatment Center/Substance Abuse Center) See also Bridgewater State Hospital. These facilities are managed by the Massachusetts Department of Correction.
Bridgewater shares its school district with neighboring Raynham, with both towns operating their own elementary and middle schools, and sending their students to a common high school. Bridgewater has one elementary school, George H. Mitchell Elementary (south and west of the town center, formerly known as Bridgewater Elementary), which serves students from kindergarten through grade three. All the fourth,fifth,and sixth graders attend M.G. Williams Intermediate School, while seventh and eighth graders attend Bridgewater Middle School. The Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School is located in Bridgewater, west of the town center. B-R's athletics teams are nicknamed the Trojans, and their colors are red, blue and white. The school's chief rival is Taunton, Massachusetts. The athletic teams of the Bridgewater Middle School use the Spartans nickname.
Bridgewater is home to the Southbrook School, a private school which serves students from kindergarten through sixth grade. There are also private schools in nearby Taunton and Brockton. Bridgewater was formerly the site of the Bridgewater Academy, a private high school located on the town common.
The town is also home to Bridgewater State University, a public liberal arts university that was originally founded as a teachers school in 1840. It is the largest of the state's nine state universities outside of the University of Massachusetts system. As of 2005, approximately 7,000 undergraduate students and 1,800 postgraduate students are enrolled at the college.[5]
Bridgewater is the site of the intersection of Interstate 495 and Route 24, with only a one mile stretch of the interstate running through the southwestern corner of town. Just north of this intersection along Route 24 are two large service areas, both of which have restaurants and a gas station. They are the only two such full service areas along Route 24, or, for that matter, anywhere along the highways of Southeastern Massachusetts (aside from a stop along U.S. Route 6 in Barnstable; that stop, however, is considered to be off the highway). At the center of town, Route 18, Route 28 and Route 104 meet at the town common. Routes 18 and 28, both north-south routes, are coextensive from this point south to the road's intersection with U.S. Route 44 in Middleborough. Route 104 passes from east to west, with ramp access to Route 24 in the west. A short portion of Route 106 passes along the town line in the northeast of town; Route 104 's eastern terminus is at that route, just along the East Bridgewater line.
The Middleborough-Lakeville line of the MBTA's commuter rail passes through the town, with a stop at the southern end of the Bridgewater State College Campus, just south of the college's main parking lots at the southern campus. There is a small air strip in nearby Taunton, and the nearest national air service can be found at T. F. Green Airport outside Providence and at Logan International Airport in Boston.